SINGAPORE – A family of five in Sengkang was rescued from a blaze resulting from a kitchen fire early on Wednesday morning.

About 50 residents from the affected block were evacuated by the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) as a precautionary measure. 

The SCDF was alerted to the fire in a fourth floor unit at Block 280B Sengkang East Avenue at 2.45am on Wednesday.

Upon arrival, the SCDF said that firefighters from Sengkang Fire Station and Punggol Fire Station heard shouts of help coming from inside the unit. They then forcibly entered through the front door of the smoke-logged unit.

The fire, which was determined by the SCDF to involve contents of the kitchen, was extinguished with a water jet.

The unit was damaged by the smoke and intense heat from the fire, said the SCDF.

Five people – two adults and three children aged 12, nine and two – were found inside one of the bedrooms and rescued by firefighters.  

They were taken to the Singapore General Hospital for smoke inhalation. One of the adults also suffered minor burn injuries, said the SCDF.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the fire was likely of electrical origin in the kitchen.

This is the second electrical fire this week, following a blaze in a Serangoon Housing Board block on Sunday, where a cat was rescued from a burning unit.

In data released earlier in 2023, the SCDF said there were 935 fires in residential buildings in 2022, where the most common cause was the overheating of food due to unattended cooking. This accounted for 37 per cent of residential fires.

The number of electrical fires also rose by 18.8 per cent to 228 cases in 2022.

The SCDF said most of these fires were caused by electrical faults in wirings or electrical appliances, or due to the overloading of electrical sockets.

To prevent electrical fires, the SCDF advises the public to adopt the following practices:

• Do not overload electrical outlets with appliances.
• Switch off appliances when they are not in use.
• Check appliances for frayed wires or cracked cords and replace them immediately.
• Do not run wires under carpets or mats, and keep wires away from hot surfaces.
• Use appliances and electrical plugs bearing the Safety Mark. The categories of appliances can be found at www.consumerproductsafety.gov.sg
• Do not leave batteries or devices to charge unattended for an extended period of time or overnight.